Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: Canidae

Taken on 15 May 2014, during a two day trip to the Rocky Mountains, W of Calgary, with friends, Cathy and Terry. "The coyote appears often in the tales and traditions of Native Americans—usually as a very savvy and clever beast. Modern coyotes have displayed their cleverness by adapting to the changing American landscape. These members of the dog family once lived primarily in open prairies and deserts, but now roam the continent's forests and mountains. They have even colonized cities like Los Angeles, and are now found over most of North America. Coyote populations are likely at an all-time high. These adaptable animals will eat almost anything. They hunt rabbits, rodents, fish, frogs, and even deer. They also happily dine on insects, snakes, fruit, grass, and carrion. Because they sometimes kill lambs, calves, or other livestock, as well as pets, many ranchers and farmers regard them as destructive pests." From National Geographic. animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/coyote/ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coyote

This was one of two Coyotes I saw when I went for a wonderful day out with friends, Cathy and Terry, into the Smith Dorrien-Spray Trail area of the Rocky Mountains, on 20 May 2012. We watched this one from the car for quite a while, seeing how stealthily she could move. Every now and again, there would be a loud, warning screech from a Columbian Ground Squirrel. The Coyote made its way along the top of an embankment parallel to the road, sometimes in sight and sometimes disappearing into the nearest trees. Eventually, it crossed the road and we were able to watch it for a while longer. "The name "coyote" is borrowed from Mexican Spanish coyote, ultimately derived from the Aztec word cóyotl, meaning "trickster". Its scientific name, Canis latrans, means "barking dog" in Latin." From Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coyote Something is definitely wrong with Flickr this morning. I posted my "daily three" images almost four hours ago and it shows only a total of 10 views for the three photos together. Not one comment, which is highly unusual. I mention this only because it's obvious that Flickr is not working properly. Anyone else experiencing this? Just checked My Contacts' new photos and there are only photos uploaded by four people, so my photos are most likely not showing up on their pages, either! I guess that's another problem, sigh. 8 hours later - just got home, and found that there has been basically no activity on my photos from today. Just left a message on the Help Forum. Hey, Flickr - what's going on? Something needs fixing! Please .....

When I was on a walk with friends on Sunday morning, we were walking along the path down by the edge of the Bow River in the LaFarge area. For maybe 45 minutes or an hour, we heard the distant call/bark of a Coyote. It was a little difficult to tell if it was just a single animal or more, but the sound didn't stop. When we climbed up to the main path, we were able to see this lone Coyote, way across open grassland and on a slight hill near the extremely distant houses. This is a fully-zoomed and heavily cropped image of an animal that I could barely see with my naked eye, lol. It always amazes me how you can get a photo from such a very long distance. Always worth trying. Despite the awful graininess, I liked the head tilted and mouth open in mid-call. It seemed very strange behaviour - I wonder if it had a mate with it, that was in trouble. Guess I'll never know ....

A photo from my archives, taken on 4 March 2010, at the Calgary Zoo. The Swift Fox is about 12 inches (30 cm) in height, and 31 inches (79 cm) long, measuring from the head to the tip of the tail, or about the size of a domestic cat. It ranges in weight from around five to seven pounds. "Captive breeding of swift foxes began in 1973 through a privately run program. In 1978, the species was officially designated as "extirpated" in Canada by COSEWIC, and a national recovery plan was approved in 1995 to reintroduce swift foxes and create a self-sustaining Canadian population. The species is now (August 20th, 2003) listed as "endangered" by COSEWIC. Swift foxes were first officially released in Alberta in 1983. By 1996, 540 foxes had been released in the Alberta-Saskatchewan border and the Milk River Ridge areas, parts of the species' native range. Most animals released were bred in captivity; the remainder were wild-born animals imported from the United States. At present (August 20th 2003), it is estimated that there are approximately 96 swift foxes in Alberta, most of them the offspring of released foxes. The population is stable or increasing slightly, but the species remains extremely vulnerable because of its small numbers and limited distribution." From www.srd.gov.ab.ca/fishwildlife/escc/pdf/swift_fox.pdf en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swift_fox (Want to just say Thank You to everyone who has visited my photostream over the last few years - 3,000,000+ views, each and every one of them so much apppreciated!)

This beautiful Coyote was outside the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary, way, way off in the distance in the Inglewood Wildlands (i.e. just a huge expanse of wild, grassy land). When I met up with friends early yesterday morning, for a three-hour walk at the Sanctuary, we were so lucky to see this sight from the parking lot. The animal chose to stand on top of this monument (not the right word, but can't think what the other word is, ha) which has some interesting designs on the stones. One beautiful sighting is always enough for me and I would have been happy to have gone home straight after this - well, to the Zoo, actually, as it is only a very short drive from the Sanctuary, and that is where I went after our long walk. Spring Break is coming up very soon, and that will not be a good time to visit the Zoo, ha. "The Inglewood Wildlands was acquired by Petro-Canada in 1985. A former Gulf Oil refinery, the Wildlands began as an extensive environmental clean-up project in order to protect the Bow river and surrounding habitats and has since grown into a river valley mosaic of grasslands, shrubs, and riparian woods. Since the clean-up began in 1978, more than 1.5 million litres of sub-surface oil have been removed. In 1992, along with the clean-up, the development of the site as a wilderness habitat and educational vehicle began to take shape. With the help of Petro-Canada, eight Calgary Rotary clubs, Ducks Unlimited Canada, The City of Calgary, and the Inglewood Community, the Inglewood Wildlands has developed into a 78-acre sanctuary where both young and old can gather to experience the original river valley while learning how environmental protection and sustainability are important aspects to a sound future." www.api.org/Environment-Health-and-Safety/Environmental-P... A cute bit of video (taken from Kelly-Sue) about a Banker who catches a dozen tiny ducklings as each one jumps from a high ledge. Mom then leads them off to the nearest water. www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video?... "HOLD YOUR CLICKS A MOMENT PLEASE ........" I'm seeing very few photos from my contacts on my home page today. Or maybe hardly anyone is posting photos at the moment? I don't think that's the case, though. Also, the views stats are all messed up again (not just for me), on 13th, 14th March as well as today. Flickr knows about this glitch and is supposedly working on fixing it.

In the last few years, I have only ever once been lucky enough to see the small Swift Fox out of its den at the Calgary Zoo. When I went on Monday afternoon, there were four of these beautiful creatures running around their enclosure. "Captive breeding of swift foxes began in 1973 through a privately run program. In 1978, the species was officially designated as "extirpated" in Canada by COSEWIC, and a national recovery plan was approved in 1995 to reintroduce swift foxes and create a self-sustaining Canadian population. The species is now (August 20th, 2003) listed as "endangered" by COSEWIC. Swift foxes were first officially released in Alberta in 1983. By 1996, 540 foxes had been released in the Alberta-Saskatchewan border and the Milk River Ridge areas, parts of the species' native range. Most animals released were bred in captivity; the remainder were wild-born animals imported from the United States. At present (August 20th 2003), it is estimated that there are approximately 96 swift foxes in Alberta, most of them the offspring of released foxes. The population is stable or increasing slightly, but the species remains extremely vulnerable because of its small numbers and limited distribution." From www.srd.gov.ab.ca/fishwildlife/escc/pdf/swift_fox.pdf

This beautiful white Timber Wolf lives with two black Wolves at the Calgary Zoo. I would love to see a Wolf in the wild. 'The grey wolf or gray wolf (Canis lupus), also known as the timber wolf or simply wolf, is a mammal of the order Carnivora. The gray wolf is the largest wild member of the Canidae family and an ice age survivor originating during the Late Pleistocene around 300,000 years ago. DNA sequencing and genetic drift studies indicate that the gray wolf shares a common ancestry with the domestic dog, (Canis lupus familiaris) and might be its ancestor." "Though once abundant over much of Eurasia and North America, the gray wolf inhabits a very small portion of its former range because of widespread destruction of its habitat, human encroachment of its habitat, and the resulting human-wolf encounters that sparked broad extirpation. Considered as a whole, however, the gray wolf is regarded as being of least concern for extinction according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Today, wolves are protected in some areas, hunted for sport in others, or may be subject to extermination as perceived threats to livestock and pets." From Wikipedia.